Golden Krust Faces More Financial Woes After CEO Commits Suicide

A lawsuit came days after Lowell Hawthorne's death and cast a cloud over vigils honoring the businessman.

Two former Golden Krust employees filed a lawsuit against the restaurant chain, casting a cloud over candlelight vigils on Saturday night in the Bronx, New York and Kingston, Jamaica for CEO Lowell Hawthorne who committed suicide, The New York DailyNews reported.

William Anderson and Sixto Ramirez allege in their federal lawsuit, filed on Thursday, that Golden Krust routinely cheats its staff on overtime pay. This suit adds to the financial pressures that many suspect led to Hawthorne’s demise. But none of that diminishes the high regard people feel for the businessman.

“He’s kind, he’s successful, but never got so big to not stop for the common man. We have lost an icon. We have lost a mentor. We have lost a man who makes others look on their lives and say, ‘I can do more, I can succeed, I can do better,’” said Herma Hawthorne, Lowell Hawthorne’s sister-in-law.

There will be a candlelight vigil to celebrate the life of Lowell Hawthorne, President and CEO of Golden Krust.

The vigil will be held from 6pm-8pm on Saturday, December 9 at the Undercroft located at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus. pic.twitter.com/5pPuhgNU51

Mourners join vigil at Golden Krust eatery to honor its founder: Dozens of mourners gathered outside a Golden Krust eatery in the Bronx Saturday to pay homage to the company founder who took his own life. https://t.co/57MNl5nvAcpic.twitter.com/O0w65KzMiw

Hawthorne, 57, shot himself in the head on Dec. 2 at his Bronx factory. The Jamaican immigrant opened his beef patty factor in the Bronx in 1989, and he grew it into an empire of 120 restaurant outlets in nine states. His rags-to-riches story ended in tragedy, with Hawthorne admitting to family members about his tax debt hours before his suicide. A surveillance video shows Hawthorne in his office at the Bronx factory speaking with two employees. After they walked out, he shot himself in the head. He was found with a single bullet to the head. The married father of four left an apology note to his family.

In addition to his federal tax debt, Hawthorne reportedly owed more than $150,000 in city taxes, the newspaper reported. About 100 employees had taken steps before his death to file a class-action lawsuit that also accused Hawthorne of owing them overtime pay.